Optimum Rep Speed For Maximum Gains

Welcome to one of the oldest issues in the world of bodybuilding: how fast should you lift for optimal muscle growth? There have been different answers to this question over the last two decades from various experts and scientists and that has made the matter even more complicated and confusing that it actually is. In this article we’ll try to shed some new light upon this debate and ultimately help you achieve better results by adequately adjusting your rep tempo.

Slow or Fast?

Rep tempo or lifting speed is basically the rate at which you perform reps in a given set. Some personal trainers will tell you that the best way to lift is explosively, thereby maximizing fiber recruitment and triggering greater growth, while others claim that lifting in a slow and controlled manner, especially on the eccentric portion of the movement, will create greater muscle tension and lead to greater hypertrophy. And then there are those who swear that frequently varying the speed is the key lifting technique for optimal gains.

So Which of These Opinions is the Closest to the Truth?

For starters, it’s a fact that a slow rep tempo will reduce the amount of weight you can handle and you’ll end up performing less work than you would with a high-velocity movement. But still, it’s also true that time under tension tends to be significantly greater at slower velocities and muscles get stimulated for a longer period of time. Therefore, manipulating the tempo will produce important differences in muscle adaptation, based on its effects on the correlation between volume and time under tension.

But most recently, a meta-analysis on the subject, involving data from eight controlled trials that compared the effects of different training tempos on muscle hypertrophy, showed that there are no significant differences in hypertrophy between lifting with a rep tempo of half a second and eight seconds, in terms of training to the point of muscular failure. It seems that the specific benefits of both slow (greater volume) and fast velocity (greater time under tension) training get evened out and in the end both tempos produce similar results.

However, there seems to be a threshold beyond which slowing down the lifting speed has negative influence on hypertrophy – when reps last for 10 seconds or longer, the amount of weight you can lift is dramatically reduced, resulting with an equally reduced muscle activation. And this inability to recruit the full spectrum of muscle fibers is ultimately detrimental to both strength and size gains, so it’s safe to say that super-slow lifting is not the best idea for maximizing your growth.

Concentric vs. Eccentric Tempo

The previously discussed findings inspected the effects of different total rep durations but left out the influence of varying the tempo on the concentric and eccentric portions of the lift. Unfortunately, only a small number of studies have tried to determine optimal concentric and eccentric tempos for muscle growth. One of them, that explored hypertrophic adaptations between different concentric and eccentric tempos under traditional training methods, split 28 women with previous training experience into two groups: one performed lower body exercises with two-second duration of the concentric portion and a six-second duration of the eccentric portion of the movement, while the second group trained on the reverse way – with a six-second duration of the concentric and two-second duration of the eccentric portion. That being said, the load and total time under tension were equal for both groups.

The results showed a similar hypertrophy of type I fibers between the groups after nine weeks of training, but the group who performed slower on the concentric part had greater increases in type II fiber than the group who performed slower on the eccentric part. However, these results cannot be made into definitive conclusions, given the many methodological flaws and practical limitations of the study.

Take Home Message

The limited number of studies and their lack of in-depth analysis of the issue make it almost impossible for us to draw objective conclusions about which lifting tempo promotes better muscle growth. In reality, lifters use a wide range of lifting speeds to stimulate optimal hypertrophy and the results vary greatly from one individual to the other. Still, there are a few things we can say for sure:

• Taking more than three seconds on the concentric portion of the movement reduces the effectiveness of the exercise in terms of muscle activation.
• Eccentric portions should be performed in a way that enables sufficient muscular tension, meaning that you shouldn’t let the forces of gravity do the work. Controlled doesn’t necessarily mean super slow.
• If you want to increase time under tension, it’s best to use slow tempo on the eccentrics and perform the concentrics explosively.
• If you want to keep on building muscle at a relatively steady rate, you could benefit from varying the rep tempo every 4-6 weeks in order to recruit different muscle fiber types.

Essentially, manipulating with rep tempo can definitively help you maximize the effectiveness of your workouts, but until science provides us with more definitive answers, you will need to find out what works best for you, based on the basic rules we’ve uncovered in this article, and keep pushing yourself beyond your limits. Good luck!

6 Best Calf Slimming Exercises To Do At Home

Naturally bulky calves can be both a blessing and a curse, depending on the point of view. Male bodybuilders usually have a trouble stimulating their calves to grow, while most of the ladies don’t really enjoy having large calves that barely fit in their favorite pair of skinny jeans. And let’s not even mention that wearing skirts or dresses that don’t cover your big calves is a sure way to stand out in a crowd. The terrifying thing is that an increasing number of women who are unsatisfied with the size of their calves are seriously considering calf reduction surgery to help them get the legs they want. Is this really necessary? Not really, because there are others, less invasive and painful methods to slim down your calves which we’re going to uncover in this article. 

In order to slim down your calves, you need to perform high reps with light weights. Here are the exercises:

#1. Sumo squats

Stand up with your feet wider than shoulder width apart, toes facing out. Lower yourself down until your thighs are parallel with the floor, keeping your back neutral, and drive yourself back up through your heels. Perform 20 reps to warm up your legs.

#2. Sumo squat calf raises

Isolate the calves by standing tiptoe and squatting down and up from the sumo squat position with feet wider than shoulder width apart. Squeeze your calves hard on your way up. Perform 20 reps.

#3. Running

Have you noticed that runners always have really slim legs? This is because endurance running is one of the best ways to get defined, slim calves. For best results, perform it for 30 minutes at a moderate pace, three times per week.

#4. Skater hops

Lower your body toward the floor, knees slightly bent, then jump off your left leg. Land on the right foot, lifting your left leg behind you, then jump from right to left, lifting the right leg behind you. Keep hopping like this until you complete 15 reps on each side.

#5. Calf raises

For this movement you’ll need a high platform or some stairs. Stand straight with your feet wide apart, toes pointing either straight (equal emphasis on all calve muscles), inwards (emphasis on the inner calves) or outwards (emphasis on the outer calves), and raise your heels off the floor as you exhale by contracting the calves. Hold the top position for a second, then lower back down. Perform 30 reps.

#6. Calf Stretches

Calf stretches will elongate the calf muscles and make them appear slimmer. Choose a wall and support your body weight into the wall with your arms. Put one foot forward and bend the knee at 90 degrees while keeping the other foot back and straight. Push the back leg down by pushing the heels into the ground. Keep the calves of the back leg stretched like this for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

The Best Core Exercises for Runners

There are lots of core exercises out there. You've got crunches, planks, ab machines and dozens of other options. Which ones should you do as a runner? Answering this question becomes easy if you first consider what your core muscles are supposed to do for you when you're running. Once you've identified the responsibilities that these muscles need to fulfill, choosing the right core exercises is a simple matter of picking movements that train your core to do its various jobs more effectively.

Your core muscles have three major duties when you're running: 

- Keeps your pelvis and spine properly aligned, and stable in that alignment 

- Aids the transfer of forces between the upper body and the legs 

- Limits spinal rotation as you run

Let's take a closer look at each of these responsibilities and identify a sample exercise that helps the core perform each more effectively.

How Your Core Helps You Maintain Stability During Running

The major joints of your body—the ankles, knees, hips, etc.—are kind of like fault lines underneath the surface of the Earth. The impact of the foot against the ground during running is a bit like an earthquake. When an earthquake occurs in an area with highly unstable faults, lots of things on the surface get broken. Similarly, runners with poor joint stability have a way of getting injured. Well-conditioned core muscles are needed to keep the spine, pelvis and hips relatively stable when impact forces travel upward from the ground through the body.

While healthy running requires a strong core, running itself doesn't create a strong core. To strengthen your core muscles so that they do a better job of stabilizing your joints when you run, you need to do exercises that force key muscles such as the transverse abdominis—the deepest core muscle, which wraps around the lower torso like a corset—to work hard. The stability ball roll-out is one such exercise.

Core Exercise #1: Stability Ball Roll-Out

Kneel on the floor facing a stability ball, lean forward slightly, and place your forearms on top of the ball. Pull your belly button toward your spine. Slowly roll the ball forward by extending your forearms out in front of you and allowing your body to tilt toward the floor. Concentrate on maintaining perfect alignment of your spine. Stop just before you're forced to arch your back. Hold this position for three seconds and then return to the start position, exhaling as you do so. Do up to 12 repetitions.

How a Strong Core Enhances Running Performance

A strong core not only reduces injury risk, but also enhances running performance. In fact, better performance may be the primary benefit of having a strong core. A 2009 study by researchers at Barry University found that six weeks of core strength training significantly improved 5K race performance in a group of 28 runners.

How does a strong core enhance running performance? This question has not been definitively answered, but I suspect that strong abs allow for a more efficient transfer of forces between the upper body and the legs during running. Although the legs get all the credit, the upper body makes a crucial contribution to power generation when you run. To appreciate this, try running with your arms pinned against your sides and feel how much harder it is. A strong core creates a tighter link between the upper body and the legs so that less force generated at one end of the body is dissipated as it travels to the other end.

You can improve the capacity of your abdominal muscles to transfer forces more efficiently by including exercises that test this capacity under load. One such exercise is the standing cable high-low pull.

Core Exercise #2: Standing Cable High-Low Pull

Stand with your left side facing a cable pulley station with a D-handle attached at shoulder height. Bend your knees slightly and place your feet slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Use both hands to grab the handle. Your arms should be almost fully extended with your trunk twisted to the left.

Now pull the handle from this position across your body and toward the floor, stopping when your hands are outside your right ankle. This is a compound movement that involves twisting your torso to the right, shifting your weight from your left foot to your right foot, bending toward the floor, and using your shoulders to pull the handle across your body. Concentrate on initiating the movement with your trunk muscles. At the bottom of the movement, pause briefly, then return smoothly to the starting position. Complete 10 repetitions. Reverse your position and repeat the exercise.

How a Strong Core Helps You Move More Effectively

Although running is a straight-ahead action, a certain amount of rotational movement of the body helps you move forward more effectively. In particular, your pelvis needs to rotate to the side as your stride opens up to allow your push-off leg to extend farther behind you. But while this happens, you want your torso to stay locked in a forward-facing position, which requires that your spine avoid rotating with your pelvis. If your spine does rotate with your pelvis, you will waste energy in much the same way you'll waste energy if you pull with one oar at a time instead of with both oars together in a rowboat.

Runners with a weak core tend to exhibit wasteful trunk rotation. You can eliminate this problem by consistently doing core exercises, such as the standing trunk rotation, that challenge the abdominal muscles. Strong abdominal muscles resist rotational forces.

Standing Trunk Rotation

Stand with your left side facing a cable pulley station with a handle attached at shoulder height. Grasp the handle with both hands and fully extend the arms. Begin with your torso rotated toward the handle and tension in the cable (i.e. the weight stack is slightly elevated from the resting position). Rotate your torso to the right while keeping your arms fully extended and the handle in line with the center of your chest. Keep your eyes focused on the handle as you rotate, and keep your hips locked forward. Return to the start position without allowing the weight stack to come to rest. Complete 12 repetitions, then reverse your position and repeat the exercise.

3 Good Reasons To Go Swimming? Heart Disease, Diabetes & Obesity

For some of us (70%, to be exact), this conversation will start off with a trip to your local YMCA to get swimming lessons. I bet you’ll want to get those lessons asaptually (new word) when you read about all the health benefits of swimming. Ladies, forget about your hair getting wet and find a protective style that will allow you to dive into the deep end without splitting your loose ends. Brothers, let go of the life jackets and come get some of this knowledge. This aerobic activity improves cardiovascular health, controls blood sugar and helps in weight loss.

Where’s Your Heart At?

According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the number one killer of African Americans. Swimming might have an answer to this problem. Breaststrokes can help decrease your chance of having an actual stroke. When cholesterol levels are high, strokes can occur. This aerobic activity improves your cardiovascular health and lowers cholesterol levels.

It’s recommend that you swim 20 to 40 minutes at a brisk pace. You’ll want to exert yourself moderately enough to work up a nice heart rate. You can start off slowly, resting between laps. However, over time you’ll be able to work out longer, adjusting your speed and technique as you progress in the practice.

Swimming is also great because you won’t be exerting your heart too much while doing it. Unlike running and other sports, swimming places less of a demand on your heart. Your heart rate while swimming will be around 10-20 beats per second.

Diabetes

The loss of Phife Dawg at 45 and Doug Banks at 57 sent an alarm to our community, which is desperately in need of an intervention for diabetes. In addition to the many diabetes-related complications, diabetics also have a higher risk of heart disease. Swimming helps to burn calories which helps in weight loss, important for diabetes prevention and management.

Swimming helps to strengthen all the major muscles in the body which helps in lowering blood sugar. Because of the nature of diabetes and how it causes the blood sugar in the body to fluctuate, it’s recommended that you regularly swim to maintain the glucose control levels. Start off by swimming as much as possible. This can be 5-10 minute sessions, eventually working your way up to 45-60 minute sessions with 10-15 minute rest periods.

Weight Loss & Toning

Going to the pool and doing the regular lap routine is only a start. For weight loss and strengthening, you want to maximize your time in the pool by trying out the butterfly stroke, fast crawl, breaststroke, backstroke and sidestroke to burn a lot of calories. These high-impact strokes will help you lose weight and tone up in places that weren’t imaginable with your other aerobic activities. For ladies looking to lose inches around the waist, this is the perfect exercise.

I’m tired of going to pool parties in the summertime and seeing all these good looking people parlaying on the side and not in the pool. As heart disease, diabetes and obesity continue to be major life-threatening conditions in our community, we must think about new and creative ways to address these issues. Exercise isn’t only lifting weights and running. Add swimming to your list – for life.

4 Things You Need to Do to Get to a Single Digit Number Bodyfat

Most of you probably already know the secret to getting a flat belly. Some strict training regime and dieting are bound to do the trick. But, if you want to truly dice your midsection and make those hard earned abs to start showing, you need to drastically reduce your body fat percentage, which takes a much more rigorous approach.

According to John Alvino, a nutrition expert who works with body builders, you can aim to reduce your body fat to 7%. However, in achieving this goal you must to approach your dieting plan more seriously, tailoring your nutrition intake with outmost precision. In other words, you need to see food purely as energy source. To help you in this effort, we provide you with these four steps.

Balancing Your Macros

Gaining lean muscle mass and reducing the body fat to 7% is not an easy task, unless you’re a genetic freak. To achieve this goal you need to constantly monitor your proteins, carbs, and fats intake, making sure that each micronutrient participates with the right amounts in your diet.

The first step is to determine how much calories you should consume on a daily basis. The easiest way to calculate your recommended calorie intake is by multiplying you current weight by 15 (if you are moderately active). In other words, the recommended daily intake for a 180 pounds guy is 2,700 calories to maintain his bodyweight.

However, you should have in mind that this applies only when you are in the normal weight range. If you are overweight and need to reduce belly fat, you calculate your daily calorie intake using the targeted bodyweight.  In other words, although your recommended daily intake is 3300 calories when you weigh 220 pounds, if you want to weigh 180 pounds, your daily intake should be 2,700 calories.

The next step is determining how much protein you should eat. The recommended daily dose is around 1.1-1.2 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. Apply the above described principle in calculating your daily intake. If you want to weigh 180 pounds, but you weigh 220 pounds, consume just 200 grams of protein per each pound of bodyweight. Having in mind that one gram of protein contains 4 calories, you’ll be consuming 800 calories from protein based foods. Thirty percent of your daily calories should come from fats. For a moderately active 180 pounds guy that would be 900 calories every day.  One gram of fat contains nine calories. So, if your projected weight is 180 pounds, you should consume 100 grams of fat.

Now, it only remains to determine how much calories you should consume from carbs. This is calculated by subtracting the amount of fats and protein calories from the total number of calories.  As we already know the other figures for a 180 pounds guy, the equation would look like this: 2,700 (total daily calories) – 900 (fats calories) – 800 (protein calories) = 1000 (carbs calories). Having in mind that 1 gram of carbs contains 4 calories, the daily intake of carbs should be 250 grams.

Find Healthy Food Sources

Consume only lean protein mostly from animal sources like chicken breast, fish and beef. Restrain your carbs intake to starchy foods like potatoes and rice. You can also include some fruits in your diet, but not too much. Two pieces a day should be enough. Although fruits provide many health benefits, if you want to reduce your body fat to less than 10%, Alvino recommends eating “only enough fruit to fill your liver with glycogen. Any extra fructose can slow fat burning or encourage fat storage.” You can also consume non-starchy vegetables, like salads and greens.

You should aim at consuming most of your fats from the protein-based foods in your diet. If you need to find additional sources of fats to satisfy the macro requirements, you can go for avocados or coconut and olive oil.

Improve Your Lifestyle

The next item on Alvino’s list is the lifestyle. Most of the guys with ripped bodies have centered their lives around rigorous training and dieting. If you want to look like them, you should try and follow their lead. No more partying and alcohol. Instead, you should aim for at least seven hours of night sleep, and drink lots of water – at least one gallon a day. According to some studies, drinking 30 ounces of water can lead to a 24% increase of energy expenditure in resistance training individuals.

It’s also essential that you reduce stress to minimum. Find some time to relax by meditating or practicing yoga.  Of course, you can’t get far without proper workout. Aim for at least three weekly training sessions, that provide you with total body workout. Your protocol should mainly consist of compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, presses and rows.

Cycle Your Carbs

It’s not unusual for your progress to slow down once you start seeing some definition in your midsection. In times like this you need to rev up your metabolism so that you can continue shedding fat. This can be done by reconstructing your carbs intake and alternating through days with reduced carbs intake and days with increased intake.

Alvino recommends reducing your total calorie intake to 10 calories per each pound of body weight for three days. During these three days consume one gram of protein and 0.5 grams of carbs per each pound of bodyweight, while the rest of the calories should come from fats. On the fourth day you should increase the calorie intake to 15 calories per pound of body weight, and your carbs intake to two grams per pound.

According to Alvino, this increases the metabolic rate as a result of the work that your digestive system has to perform. Another benefit of boosting the carbs intake is that it will make your muscles look bigger and leaner by filling them up with water.

Is Intermittent Fasting the Future of Fat Loss?

Losing weight and getting leaner by eating six meals a day might soon become outdated, scientists say. Scientific research has piled up increasing amount of evidence showing how intermittent fasting can speed up the process of fat burning.

The US have become a nation known as incessant eaters and snackers unfortunately. If you wish to get ripped and add years to your life, you might want to keep a distance from the kitchen more often.

Intermittent fasting is defined as a cycle of interchanging periods of decreased calorie intake and  normal food consumption. It is a pattern which scientists say dates back to our ancestral food habits in a time when food was not always readily available.  It is in stark contrast to most modern diets’ daily calorie intake, where dieters’ goal is to reduce their daily energy intake, hoping it will rid them of their “bulges”.

An increasing number of researchers are saying that the intermittent fasting method is a sure-fire way for people to shred the excess fat. A study published in 2015 in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that intermittent fasting gives a safe rate weight loss of 0.5 to 1.7 lbs/week, along with decreasing the overall body fat percentage. In another similar study, at Baylor University (Waco, Texas) found that fasting on alternating days of 3 to 12 weeks in duration, decreased both bodyweight and body fat.

And it is possible that the results can have a long lasting effect. Namely, scientists in Australia found that 8 weeks of intermittent fasting could not only stimulate the loss of fat but it could also stave off the accumulation of fat in the upcoming 44 weeks, even when the subjects were given a total freedom to their food choices. Researchers say this might have something to do with the fact that intermittent fasting has an impact on the hunger hormones and gives you the awareness of what a real physical hunger is.

And the good news keep on coming. Research has shown that intermittent fasting has a greater adherence rate by dieters than most other diets and maintains the muscle mass a lot better. There have also been indications that period of intermittent fasting can improve your heart health by lowering the cholesterol, triglycerides, inflammation and blood pressure. Some studies say it might also increase the production of a gene connected to one’s longevity and help improve your brain’s function as you get older. Reducing inflammation and the oxidative stress may be the reason why intermittent fasting sharpens your mind.

So far, we’ve concluded it benefits the muscles, overall health and brain gray matter. But how does intermittent fasting shred the fat off of you? It seems that this stems from the improved insulin sensitivity within your body. As your cells become more sensitized to insulin, the blood sugar regulating hormone, the body starts processing food more efficiently, thus having a lesser risk of storing fat even when eating more calories during the non-fasting periods. These very benefits have been the strongest reason that intermittent fasting has gained a reputation as an enemy to diabetes.

Intermittent fasting also instructs the body to give priority to fat burning for needed energy during periods of carbohydrate stores shortage. And because this situation can preserve the already existing muscle, there is no drop in fat-burning metabolism that is commonly found in low-calorie diets, which can at the same time cause a drop in the body’s muscle mass. Reasearch has also shown that most people who have tried intermittent fasting do not overeat when the non-fasting days come around, which actually creates a better overall calorie deficit. Imagine how much time you could be saving, with less meal planning and food preparation in your schedule. It’s a win-win situation.

5 Glute Exercises Better Than Squats

Let’s be honest – squats can be rather boring and unenjoyable. Or they can activate a long forgotten knee pain right when you least need it. So is there a better way to tone your glutes and get a firm, round butt? Of course there is. You don’t have to rely on squats to achieve a tight bottom and strong legs.

In this article we’ll show you the shorter route to a firm booty consisting of 5 great butt moves with far superior results than the plain old squat!

#1. Single-Leg Deadlift With Kettlebell

Take a 20-pound kettlebell in your left hand and stand on your left leg, keeping the other one slightly off the ground. Keeping your back straight and the left knee slightly bent, lean your upper body forward while extending your free leg behind you for better balance. Lower the kettlebell as close to the ground as possible, then return to the starting position and perform the movement with the kettlebell in your right hand and the left leg off the ground. Perform 3 sets of 15 reps on each leg.

#2. Curtsy lunges

Stand straight with your feet hip-width apart, hands on hips. Take a big step back with your left leg and cross it behind you, lowering the left knee toward the floor while keeping the right knee directly above your right ankle and the torso upright. Continue lowering your hips until your right thigh is almost parallel to the floor. Hold the position for 2 seconds then return to the starting position and perform it on the other side. Perform 3 sets of 15 reps on each side.

#3. Fire hydrants with leg extension

Begin on all fours with knees hip-width apart and your hands directly below your shoulders. Keeping the knee bent to a 90-degree angle, lift your left leg out to the left side, then extend it. Pause for 2 seconds before bending the knee again, then bring the leg back to the starting position and repeat. Perform 3 sets of 20 reps on each side.

#4. Barbell step-ups

For this movement, you’ll need to place a bench or a chair in front of you. Place your right foot in the center of the chair, while holding a barbell behind your head with both hands. Step up onto the bench and bring your left knee forward. Lower yourself back down and repeat with the other leg. Perform 3 sets of 20 reps on each leg.

#5. Bear plank leg lifts

Begin in a plank position with your body forming a straight line and your shoulders directly above your wrists. Bend both knees slightly and then bend your right knee at 90-degrees. Squeeze your glutes and lift your right leg, raising the heel up as high as possible. Hold the position for 2 seconds, then lower the leg down and repeat. Perform 3 sets of 15 reps on each side.

These five exercises are all you need to effectively target the glutes and boost your backside aesthetics. Forget about squats and perform these moves every day and we guarantee that you’ll be sporting a nicely toned tush in virtually no time!

Dramatically Boost Your Bench Press

The bench press is a core fundamental exercise for developing upper body strength and power, effectively targeting your pecs, anterior delts, triceps and lats. And improving upper body strength will greatly improve your overall athletic performance and growth, which is why many bodybuilders are obsessed with increasing their bench press.

In addition, since the chest is one of the most stubborn areas for many bodybuilders, the bench press has become the most popular way to make those pesky pecs grow, while reaping strength and size gains in every other muscle in the upper body as well.

Keeping in mind that the bench press is a relatively simple exercise, involving lying on a flat board and pushing a load away from your body, it should be very easy to achieve great progress in a short amount of time by performing it regularly. Unfortunately, as we’ve all experienced, this is not the case and most people hit bench press plateaus far too often. Getting optimal results with the bench press requires a bit more than lying on the bench and heaving the weight around.

Research findings over the last decade suggest inducing greater muscle cell activity by increasing the intensity of the exercise with the use of heavy weights in order to achieve greater growth. And most recent studies show that by increasing the velocity of the movement in a safe and controlled way (slowly lowering the bar then explosively pushing it upward), you can get exceptional gains in growth and power. In fact, one study found that explosive bench pressing leads to a 10% greater increase in strength compared to bench pressing at normal lifting speed. But that’s not all. Here are 3 more science-backed reasons why high-velocity bench pressing can help you achieve stellar results in no time!

#1. Increase Fast-Twitch Fiber Levels

Based on the relative rate at which they contract, muscle fibers can be slow-twitch or fast-twitch. Since fast-twitch fibers contract around four times faster than their counterparts, these fibers naturally have a greater capacity to produce force, which makes them crucial for enhancing muscle growth and strength gains.

Not so long ago, exercise scientists have opposed the idea that resistance exercise can cause muscle fibers to shift from slow to fast, but more recent studies show that certain training methods can actually stimulate such conversion. One study by Liu et al.  made one group of subjects perform regular-velocity bench presses while the other performed normal-velocity bench presses on the first day of the protocol and high-speed bench presses with 30% of their 1RM during the next workout. The results showed that the second group increased the fast-twitch fiber type by 15% while decreasing the slow-twitch fiber type by approximately the same amount.

#2. Explosive Chest Training Promotes Greater Muscle Activity

Many studies over the last years have found that explosive movements have the ability to improve muscle strength by stimulating post-activation potentiation(PAP), i.e. instantaneous increase is muscle force production generated from the muscle activation reached during a previous high-intensity lift.

One such study by Wilcox et al.  showed that explosive chest press movements lead to an instant improvement in bench press strength by activating PAP. In the study, a group of nine male subjects performed high-velocity push-ups before attempting their 1RM bench press, while the control group performed only regular-speed push-ups. The results were clear – the group that performed high-velocity push-ups substantially increased their 1RM and the control group showed no increase in strength and power.

#3. Blast Your Bench Press Past the Sticking Point

The sticking point refers to a drop in the speed of the bar caused by decreased force production and an unfavorable biomechanical position of the targeted muscle groups during the concentric part of the movement. This undesired phenomenon usually hinders your ability to complete the movement and negatively influences your performance, which is why most training programs implement training strategies to minimize ways to reduce its effects, and one of the most successful techniques is increasing the velocity of the movement.

A study by Sakamoto et al. showed that subjects who performed fast bench presses had greater muscle activity and a higher number of reps. These results point to the fact that higher velocity minimizes the negative influence of the sticking point, which is only one of the many ways explosive movement can improve your bench press performance.

Run Faster With These Resisted Running Gear Tips

No matter the distance we're training for, we all want to be faster. 

Sprint intervals, hill repeats and Fartlek runs are a step in the right direction, but to really put your speed training into overdrive, you may need to use some advanced apparatus.

The Key Benefits of Resisted Running

In the past, resisted running has been mostly limited to the world of short distance sprinting. Research shows that lightweight sled pulls and parachute sprints can effectively improve early-phase acceleration over the first 20 meters of an all-out sprint.  

But there is plenty of research demonstrating that sprint training can be beneficial for long-distance runners as well, largely due to the boost in VO2Max that high-intensity sprint intervals can elicit. Sports scientists have also found that resisted running is actually gentler on runners' joints than all-out sprints and other forms of strength training. The additional load slows the pace and reduces the number of steps without significantly increasing joint strain. Is it possible, then, that resisted pulling or pushing at max effort can net even greater benefits? 

A 2007 study that had a group ofthat required "strong man" Strongman athletes to push a 4,000-plus-pound 4,000+ lb vehicle found that resisted pulling or pushing elicited incredibly high metabolic workloads. Luckily, you don't have to push or pull the family car around to reap the benefits of resisted running--most studies have found that sprinting while towing a weight equal to around 10 percent of your body weight is ideal for improving acceleration and power, while moderately heavier resistance levels may provide other significant performance benefits. 

Which Tools Are Best?

For developing early-phase acceleration, sleds and parachutes are both effective training tools. Each device should be attached to a harness more than 30 feet long, in order to allow for unrestricted movement. 

If your aim is to pile on the weight and build strength and aerobic power, then the sled has a clear advantage. That's because the only way to increase the load with a parachute system is to use a larger parachute, or to hook up a complicated network of multiple parachutes. With a sled, all you have to do is add another weight or two. 

If you want to be able to change the resistance level at various points throughout a single repetition--to train yourself to push hard at the end of a race, for example--you'll want to use a heavy-duty bungee and harness system. This option is lightweight, portable, and relatively cost effective--but it will require a workout partner or training coach. 

Gradual Progression, Workout Timing and Recovery

Sprinting of any kind is metabolically taxing, both to the muscles and the central nervous system, and resisted running is no exception. For this reason, it's imperative that you start slow and gradually increase total training volume: load x sets x speed. It's also important to allow your body to fully recover after loaded training days. Even though you may not experience the muscle soreness that a heavy weight workout or plyometric training can produce, you'll only be hurting your performance if you follow up a resisted running day with another demanding workout. 

Because of the high metabolic demands, it's best to incorporate these workouts early in the training season or during the off-season. 

Kyle Williams, an Australian high-altitude endurance athlete and coach, says that he uses sled training in the early, base-building phase of training and sticks with "tried and tested long runs and challenging tempo or interval sessions" later in the training season. He also recommends that runners limit resisted running to one session per week in order to allow for adequate recovery.

While little research has been done on the benefits of resisted running for endurance performance to date, this hot training trend has runners, coaches and exercise physiologists taking a closer look. By starting off slow and testing different training loads, resisted running could kick your speed into the next gear.

Bonus: A Resisted Workout Sample to Get You Started

Australian coach Kyle Williams uses a heavier weighted sled workout to boost strength and power as well as to stimulate the acidosis threshold response. He recommends that runners pull about 40 percent of their bodyweight forward, backward, and laterally right and left in an all-out effort for 15 seconds with a two-minute rest between each direction. For pure acceleration work, however, he unloads the sled and drags it empty for 60-second sprint repeats with two minutes of rest in between.

The Truth About Fat No One Talks About

It’s no secret that fat is frowned upon. Love handles, FUPA, gut – all words associated with that excess 10 pounds of “laffy taffy” you’ve been trying to drop since last fall. In fact, the way we talk about fat, affects women of all ages — even teens.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), of 220,000 teens surveyed from Europe and North America – a fifth of whom were classified as overweight — nearly half of the 15-year-old girls believed they were “too fat.” An answer that proves to be a driving force on why eating disorders strike twice as many women as men.

However, despite the “dirty words” negative connotation, there’s one major key alert that’s gotten lost in the shuffle — fat is actually pretty important for your health. So, without further ado, let’s dive into why fat it NOT always the enemy.

What Does Fat Do?

“Fat is paramount to survival: You need it for warmth and insulation, for cushioning your bones and internal organs, for energy, and even to think,” Carl Lavie, MD, medical director of Preventative Cardiology at the John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute in New Orleans and author of The Obesity Paradox, reports Refinery 29.

Fat also strengthens the immunity system: “the cells that are precursors to fat cells, called preadipocytes, act like special immune cells that devour invading germs and bacteria, which helps explain why people who diet to extremes tend to get sick more often,” Dr. Lavie explains.

Not to mention, people who are classified as obese have a 6% lower risk of dying from serious illnesses. “One theory is that fat helps guard the body from damage, particularly as we age,” Dr. Lavie says. “Anytime your body is fighting an illness or dealing with a chronic disease, it requires more energy, so it makes sense that that extra fat is helpful.” This seems particularly true for those who are bootylicious, claims one Oxford University study. “The thought is this fat traps the potentially harmful fatty acids that can travel through your bloodstream to your heart,” Dr. Lavie says.

Here are three types of body fat you should know about to separate the”good” from the “bad”:

White Fat

Also called subcutaneous fat, white fat settles mainly around your hips and thighs, sculpting curves and providing cushion. It’s also the most common type found in your body.

Why it’s important: It burns energy and produces a hormone called adiponectin. Research suggests adiponectin has anti-inflammatory and “insulin-sensitizing” properties and that may help reduce your risk for Type 2 diabetes.

Brown Fat

Aka “good fat” burns energy even when you’re lounging – much like muscle. Although early experts believed this form of fat depleted during childhood, a 2009 Harvard study discovered that 7.5% of women and 3.1% of men had small amounts of brown fat lurking in their bodies. These individuals appeared to have healthier metabolisms.

Visceral Fat

This fat is the devil. Often referred to as “belly fat,” it somewhat suffocates your organs deep inside your abdominal cavity – releasing stress hormones called cortisol and inflammatory substances called cytokines. These toxins impact your body’s production of insulin. As a result, you run the risk of developing both Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

What to Do

Develop healthy habits, like eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly.

5 Ways To Beat The ‘Stress Hormone’ For Weight Loss

If you want to win the war on stress, it is important to understand the role of cortisol and how it can be your friend or foe. If balanced, cortisol can help your body keep its immune system in check. But, left unchecked and unbalanced, cortisol can wreak havoc on your body.

Cortisol is critical to your body. Also known as the ‘stress hormone,’ it is essential to helping you regulate your blood pressure and immune system when your body is in crisis. When your cortisol levels are balanced, it protects your immune system from emotional setbacks as well as physical attacks. Cortisol also helps you to use your energy reserves to protect your body’s ability to fight off infections.

However, if your cortisol levels are always working at a high level, this hormone can cause some problems to your body. Some of these problems include sleeplessness, a non-functioning immune response, abnormal blood sugar levels and weight gain in your stomach.

Abnormal blood sugar levels and weight gain occur when you are stressed out because your body urges you to eat something high in calories. It provides a temporary boost in energy and leads to weight gain and increased sugar levels. So it’s important to strike a balance with your cortisol levels.

Here are five ways to lower your cortisol:

1. Pay attention to what you eat. Nutrition is critical and controls the production of cortisol in your body. Eating a balanced diet of fruits, vegetables and low-glycemic foods like eggs lower the cortisol levels in the blood. Whole grain products also help to control the production levels of cortisol in the body. When you add in vitamin B5 and folic acid, which is plentiful in beans, fish, whole grains, sunflower seeds and fruits to this mix, this also provides balance for your cortisol levels. Processed sugar and flours do the opposite, causing cortisol levels to increase. By paying attention to what you eat, you can balance the cortisol levels in your body helping to protect your immune system.

2. Exercise regularly. Regular exercise serves two purposes. It helps you manage your weight and also results in weight loss. When you exercise, your body produces those feel good endorphins. As endorphins are released into your brain, this helps you to combat stress and anxiety. As a result, excess cortisol production is alleviated. By exercising regularly, you also contribute to reducing excess amounts of cortisol from your system. In other words, it’s a stress buster.

3. Meditate to clear your mind. According to the National Science Foundation, we have between 12,000 – 50,000 thoughts per day. That’s a lot of thoughts! With so much thinking and continuous thought processing, it’s no wonder that our stress levels can easily get out of whack. That’s why it’s important to take a breather! Sit with your eyes closed in a silent environment so you can clear your mind. Do this for 15 minutes a day.

Mediation is helpful because our bodies have an amazing ability to create self-repair. According to the book, Mind Over Medicine; Scientific Proof That You Can Heal Yourself, our bodies can help fight cancer, prevent infection, repair wounds, and also protect us from infectious agents. But, when we stress out, the opposite occurs. The body’s ability to heal itself becomes deactivated when your body is full of stress hormones such as cortisol. 15 minutes of daily downtime will help alleviate, reduce your stress levels and regulate cortisol production in your body.

4. Spend some time cuddling with animals. Ever wonder why seeing and playing with animals provides you with a warm and fuzzy feeling? Well, there is a scientific reason this happens. When you snuggle with animals, it fills you with oxytocin, endorphins and other healing hormones that support your body’s ability to initiate self-healing. This is why pet therapy is mentally and physically effective. If you don’t have a pet, a trip to the pet store or local zoo can help elicit these same emotions.

5. Give of yourself. A South African woman was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and decided instead of focusing on herself she needed to shift this energy towards others. The medicine woman wrote the South African woman a prescription to give 29 gifts for 29 days. The woman with multiple sclerosis completed the request, and the results were astonishing. Her MS symptoms started to lessen. By giving and being generous, it activated a relaxation response that helped to bolster her body’s natural self-repair mechanism. This is not a suggestion that generosity will cure diseases. However, science is still uncovering how the mind can have a tremendous effect on the diseases we have and how we deal with them.

6 Dumbest Diet Myths That Must Die

No matter if you’re a health-conscious bodybuilder or a person who prioritizes his health above everything else, your diet is the first place to start building a healthier lifestyle. On the good side, our modern knowledge about the nutritional value of food is very extensive, but on the bad side, we often live by stupid myths that block our progress toward better health instead of speeding it up. Without further ado, we present you with 6 dangerous diet myths that you need to shake off as soon as you finish reading this article.

Myth 1: Detoxify!

While it’s true that our air, water and food are polluted to a certain level and we ingest toxic chemicals on a daily basis, our bodies are naturally well equipped for dealing with such issues and rarely need our help in doing so.

Most of the time, the popular periodic cleanings with special herbs, vegetables with ‘magical’ properties or even coffee enemas are completely unnecessary. These methods rose to prominence thanks to the new age wave of loud health-obsessed naturopaths, who generally mean well and give good advices, but in many cases their claims lack scientific support. And most important of all, the liver is not some helpless organ that needs our constant attention to work properly – it has its own ways of cleansing and regulating the elimination of toxins, so stop stressing about it.

Myth 2: Only hormone-free chickens are safe for consumption

Listen up, people. The “hormone-free” label on chicken is an absolute scam.The fact is that no chicken can be completely hormone-free – chickens, like most animals, naturally produce growth hormones, so progesterone, testosterone and estrogen can be naturally found in their meat, which makes that label very misleading. Worried about added hormones? Stress not. Additive hormones have been banned by the FDA for the past 50 years. Not only that such practice is illegal, experts say that it’s not economic at all and nobody would bother to use it anyway.

The reason why today’s chickens are so large is not because they are fed growth hormones (which by the way cannot be taken orally), it’s because farmers have increased their size over time with the help of selective breeding. In addition, the “free range” label doesn’t really mean that all of those brands have raised their chickens on a sunny meadow – that little trick is called advertising. So just relax and eat some chicken.

Myth 3: Whole milk will kill you

You’ve been advised to go for skim over full-fat diary for years now. If you ask any of your friends about his opinion on whole milk, he or she will gladly inform you that this dangerous liquid will make you gain weight, raise your cholesterol levels and clog your arteries.

However, a ton of scientific evidence says quite the contrary. Some studies suggest that people who consume full-fat diary are healthier, weight less and have a lower risk of developing diabetes. As it turns out, the bioactive substances in full-fat milk positively influence the metabolism, helping it burn fat for energy. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you can eat as much as you want and whole milk will magically make you slimmer. In addition, whole milk contains oleic acid, which is a fatty acid that protects heart health. Stop the craziness and give full-fat diary a second chance.

Myth 4: Sugar feeds cancer

We’re pretty sure that you’ve already heard that cancer supposedly loves sugar. Ever since this unbalanced piece of information went online back in 2007, later supported by a few doctors on some talk show, cancer patients and overly anxious people around the globe treat sugar like it’s the meanest killer known to man.

The myth that cancer patients shouldn’t eat sugar since it will cause cancer to grow faster is a very dangerous one. Not only that consuming sugar won’t speed the growth of cancer cells, but eliminating carbohydrates from your diet will make your whole body starve and suffer – all cells in your organism depend on these nutrients for energy. And adjusting your diet in order to avoid sugar can cause you to drastically lower your intake of many other vital nutrients that those “cancer-supporting” foods have to offer.

Myth 5: Say no to salt

The war declared on salt has been raging for quite a while now and policy makers have been convincing Americans to consume less salt for decades – even toddlers know that salt is bad for you. But does high sodium intake really lead to hypertension and worsened overall health?

Science highly doubts it. A study published in the American Journal of Hypertension failed to find strong evidence that restricting the salt in your diet reduces the risk for cardiovascular disease, while another study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that low consumption of salt is associated with a greater risk of dying from heart disease. Crazy, right? On the other hand, your body needs iodine, a nutrient typically added to table salt since 1924, to produce the thyroid hormones T3 and T4. Today, iodine deficiency is a major health concern worldwide and it’s been linked to numerous health problems such as hypothyroidism, depression, autoimmune diseases, cancer, psychiatric disorders and mental retardations in children and infants. Therefore, it’s crucial that you consume an adequate amount of iodized salt on a daily basis.

Myth 6: Soy protein is just as good as whey protein

Nope, it doesn’t even come close to whey and all of its variants. First of all, many studies from the past decade have shown that the isoflavones present in soy negatively influence testosterone levels and can even lead to testicle shrinkage. While today you can find few brands of soy protein that don’t contain those dreaded compounds, that doesn’t make soy a good option for building muscle.

A study from McMaster University found that low and average doses of soy protein have almost no effect on muscle protein synthesis, compared to the same doses of whey protein which significantly increased muscle protein synthesis. The reason for this is simple – whey contains a much higher percentage of leucine, the most important amino acids when it comes to muscle building.

4 Cable Exercises to Build Boulder Shoulders

You can have big pecs, slabs of meat on your back, huge legs and arms and a six-pack, but what really gives that powerful look that turns heads is a pair of king-sized boulder shoulders. Having big shoulders and a thin waist is the ultimate look of a V-shaped torso, a lot of men aspire to achieve.

We already assume you are doing the essential compounds exercises for shoulders, like the overhead barbell and dumbbell press and you might be using the famous Arnold press. And that’s fine, they are great exercises, but they place the biggest emphasis on the front (anterior) and middle (lateral) delts and don’t fully develop the shoulders from all sides, especially the rear (posterior) delts. That’s why, you need to add a few more exercises in your arsenal to fully stimulate the deltoid complex.

Cable exercises are a great choice because they can isolate and hit the muscles from different angles, isolate them and provide a greater time under tension.

Here are four cable exercises that can help you do just that:

1. Rear cable raise

This exercise targets the rear or posterior head of the deltoid muscle. The execution is the following: you position yourelf in a standing position by having the cable columns to your sides. Then, you take the left stirrup with your right hand and vice versa, the right stirrup with your left hand. Keep your spine in a neutral position and your back straight. Bend the knees slightly as you bend over at the hips. While pulling the cables, keep your elbows pointing outward and slightly bend your arms.

2. Lateral cable raise

This exercise is also called the low-pulley shoulder raise. It isolates and targets the lateral or middle head of the deltoid and also involves the forearms. The execution is the following: you position yourself by standing next to the right side of a low pulley row, use your left hand to execute the movement passing your body by you grabbing one handle that’s attached to the low pullet with your palm facing down (pronated grip).

While you rest the left hand in front of your body, your right can be placed on the machine for balance and support. Always keep your back straight and your feet at shoulder-width. Take a deep breath and start the movement with your left hand by pulling across your body until you reach shoulder height, then exhale. Keep the handle at that height for a few seconds to feel the muscle contract, then slowly lower the hand to the starting position and breathe in again.

3. Front cable raise

This exercise targets the front or anterior part of the deltoid muscle. The execution is the following: Attach a straight bar to a low pully, grab it with an overhand grip at shoulder-width. Stand with your back turned to the cable column, stand over the cable between your legs and hold the bar in front of your thighs. Lean forward slightly and bend your knees a bit. Then you start the movement by raising the bar in front of you until it reaches shoulder height. You hold it for a few seconds at the top to feel the muscles contract and you lower it to the starting position.

4. Upright cable row

You execute this exercise by holding a straight bar and start raising your upper arms only (elbows first) until your elbows reach your shoulders. You should keep your upper arms at 90 degrees to your body, while slightly bending your elbows as you raise your arms to the sides. You squeeze at the top and then start slowly lowering the bar.

A well-rounded shoulder workout should have one’s aesthetics as a primary goal, since it creates the illusion of a V-shaped body in combination with a narrow waist and a wide back. You can expect to see great results and optimize your shoulder training with these cable exercises in combination with a good diet and proper recovery.

Top 5 Fitness Mistakes Women Make

Attention to my ladies! If you are kicking your a$$ in the gym and feel like your nutrition is on point but you aren’t seeing any results.. this post is for you.

As a Personal Trainer & Nutrition Coach who specializes in women’s fitness & nutrition, I’ve helped countless ladies (and some guys too;)) achieve the body of their dreams. Many times, clients come to me thinking they are doing the “right” thing, but in reality they are making some big mistakes that are not helping them in their road to success!

Hopefully this post saves you from making some mistakes and gets you on the right track to achieving your dream bod!

Mistake #1: You’re Under eating

It truly makes me sad when I hear about women eating 1200 calories a day or less to reach their physique goals. Not only will you likely feel tired and lethargic on super low calories, but you are wreaking havoc on your metabolism. Super low calorie, extreme diets almost always backfire. The less food you eat, the more your body becomes accustomed to that amount. Once you reach maintenance on this low of calories, you have likely slowed your metabolism down to a point that will make it very hard to increase your calories to a maintenance level without weight gain. Also, without proper nutrition, your body is not as efficient at repairing and restoring your cells.

Please ladies, don’t be afraid to eat to fuel your workouts.. I suggest keeping your calories as high as you can while still being able to lose fat. Use a reliable online calorie calculator tool to figure out your needs.

Mistake #2: You still believe that resistance training will make you bulky

I can’t wait for the day that this myth truly dies for good! But, believe it or not I still hear about women who refuse to pick up a 10lb dumbbell because they fear they will look “manly”. Ladies, do yourself a favor and get in the weight room! Even if you were making a conscious effort to truly gain muscle mass (i.e. eating a TON, lifting super heavy with a low rep range, taking supplements etc), it would still be VERY hard for you to look “manly”. By incorporating a smart strength training plan into your routine, you will not only build some sexy lean muscle mass (i.e. get tighter and leaner), but you will also speed up your metabolism by doing so! #winwin

Mistake #3: You listen to your husband/boyfriend/guy friends too much.

Let me clear myself up here, I will say that there are lots of men out there who are incredibly knowledgeable about female training. But many times I see women taking *too much* of their male counterpart’s advice and they are frustrated because they don’t see any progress.

Of course, I am a BIG advocate of women incorporating resistance training, and I’m not saying that the style of training between men and women is completely different. BUT I am saying that if you are trying to shed fat and you are taking your husband’s advice of lifting SUPER heavy weight with a really low rep range, drinking a bunch of creatine and not seeing a change… you need to rethink your strategy.

Mistake #4: You think that there is only “one way” to achieve your goal.

Ok I can’t even lie because this is something that I have been guilty of in the past. Look, there is no “one way” to get to where you want to be. If you get stuck in the mentality that you should ONLY be running or ONLY be weight training. You close yourself off to other modalities that could be incredibly beneficial to you. If you love resistance training, keep an open mind about incorporating HIIT. (Hint: there are sooo many benefits of High Intensity Interval Training). If you love to run, start incorporating resistance training in your routine to add some sexy curves to your bod.

Bottom line: Keep an open mind and be open to other exercise modalities that will enhance your body (or take it to the next level!).

Mistake: #5 You only use the scale to track your progress.

The scale is a tool. Period. Know when to use it, know when you don’t need it.  If you are trying to cut fat the scale is a helpful tool that will give you ONE I repeat… ONE… data point. Other data points you NEED to be tracking include: progress pictures, body measurements, how you *feel* and how your clothes are fitting you.

I can’t even tell you how many times I see women get caught up with the number on the scale, and little do they know if they just cut through the emotion behind that (stupid) number, they would REALLY see their body transform. One of my clients was hesitant to take progress pictures before she began my program.. I told her she had to. At the end of the program, she was INCREDIBLY thankful because while the scale didn’t move a whole bunch (she didn’t have much fat to lose), her body COMPLETELY transformed (5% body fat GONE!). Please ladies, do yourself a favor and try to get out of the emotion behind that number!

What you can do:

In order to get yourself on track, you will want to take a good hard look at your fitness and nutrition plan. Be honest with yourself! Are you under eating? Scared to lift more than 3 lb? Obsessed with the scale? Look, there’s a lot of information out there about what to eat, how to train etc… if you find yourself lost, start by checking out some good online resources (like right here on Fitness & Power). Or you may consider working with a personal trainer & nutrition coach to get you on track!